A former special envoy to Haiti is holding former President Joe Biden’s lack of engagement in decision-making accountable for the ongoing crises plaguing the Caribbean nation.
Daniel Foote served as the special envoy to Haiti in 2021 but resigned in protest, criticizing the administration’s ineffective support of unpopular and unelected leaders.
“All of the governments that the U.S. has backed or imposed over the last 110 years have failed to represent the Haitian people,” Foote stated. He accused the Biden administration of supporting the then-unelected Prime Minister Ariel Henry solely due to his loyalty, despite questions surrounding Henry’s rise to power.
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Foote, who has been engaged with Haiti since the catastrophic 2010 earthquake that resulted in over 200,000 deaths, believes the nation is on the brink of complete collapse.
“It’s a thousand times worse now because we dismantled the already fragile social contract between the people and the government. Since 2012, there has been no effective government. It’s a failed state,” he remarked.
A recent U.N. report indicated that more than 1 million individuals have been displaced due to gang violence in Haiti, nearly 10% of the population. Additionally, another report highlighted that 85% of Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital, is now under gang control.
Foote mentioned he never had the opportunity to meet Biden during his tenure as envoy, claiming that by then, Biden had “deteriorated to the point that they didn’t want him to see a lot of people.” Instead, he alleged that Victoria Nuland, the undersecretary of state for political affairs, and U.S. Ambassador to Haiti Michele Sison were the ones who devised the support plan for Henry.
Foote recalled a statement Biden allegedly made as a senator in 1994: “If Haiti just quietly sunk into the Caribbean, or rose up 300 feet, it wouldn’t matter a whole lot in terms of our interests.”
“That explains Joe Biden’s approach to Haiti,” Foote said.
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Neither Biden’s spokesperson nor Sison responded to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Nuland dismissed Foote’s claims as “completely false” and referred Fox News Digital to former Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Brian Nichols.
“What I observed was intense coordination; no single person or two individuals made significant policy decisions,” Nichols noted, explaining that he had just begun his role about a week before Foote resigned on September 21 and was not involved in prior decisions. “All issues were debated thoroughly at multiple levels, including up to the Cabinet secretary level.”
Foote indicated that in the past he did not require security while moving about Haiti, as Americans were typically welcomed. However, he remarked that the situation has drastically changed.
“Now the Haitians are looking toward China and Russia,” he observed. “They’re saying, ‘Somebody help us. The Americans just keep messing us over,’ yet they still seek American assistance.”
The Biden administration has committed approximately $600 million to finance an international security force, known as the multinational security support mission (MSS), comprising personnel from countries like Bangladesh, Kenya, Chad, and Guyana. However, Foote criticized the MSS strategy as a waste of taxpayer money.
“They lack the security infrastructure needed to confront the gangs,” he asserted. “They require help, but not 5,000 random police officers from a variety of developing countries led by Kenyans, who have no experience leading a security mission.”
Nichols defended the MSS, asserting that their efforts are “incredibly heroic.”
“Having observed them on the ground in Haiti, they are an extremely professional and courageous force, dedicated to their mission,” he said.
Foote suggested that President Donald Trump should deploy 60 U.S. special forces personnel to train an elite anti-gang unit in Haiti and reinstate a signals intelligence program to monitor gang communications. He warned that without such measures, the repercussions would reach far beyond Haiti’s borders.
“It’s going to perpetuate chaos just off the U.S. shores and lead to a significant surge in migration,” he cautioned. “If you walk through Port-au-Prince, you can see why people are fleeing. Humans cannot survive under these conditions.”
Jack Brewer, a former NFL player who founded a global foundation active in Haiti since the 2010 earthquake, echoed Foote’s concerns.
“People are being burned alive, and police officers are facing horrific, torturous deaths,” Brewer reported. “Just this week, one of my doctors lost five close friends and family members to murder.”
He stressed that any genuine change must originate from within Haiti.
“We need to cultivate a culture that rejects theft and corruption,” he stated. “Currently, it’s socially acceptable to steal, and that mindset must change. Until we restore the moral fabric of the nation and law and order, it won’t matter what actions America takes.”
